H3N2v Case In Washtenaw County Michigan

The Michigan Department of Community Health (MDCH) says it has identified its first H3N2v influenza infection in a child from Washtenaw County. The child was reportedly around swine at the Ingham County Fair on August 1, 2012. The illness was mild and did not require hospitalization.

The above comments from Kent County Health Department news release describe the first confirmed H3N2v case in Michigan. It is unclear if diagnosis was made with the CDC RT-PCR test which is used by state labs. This case has not been CDC confirmed.

Although the link to the agricultural fair will undoubtedly lead to media reports on H3N2v jumping from pigs to people, all sequences released to date from H3N2v cases in 2012 (A/Utah/10/2012, A/Hawaii/03/2011, A/Indiana/06/2012, A/Indiana/07/2012, A/Indiana/08/2012, A/Indiana/09/2012, A/Indiana/12/2012, A/Ohio/13/2012) have been a novel sub-clade first identified at a West Virginia day care center in November, 2011, which is distinct from the first 10 H3N2v cases in 2011.